Always On My Mind (Lucky Harbor #8) by Jill Shalvis (Book Review)

After dropping out of pastry school and messing up her big break on a reality cooking show, Leah Sullivan needs to accomplish something in her life. But when she returns home to Lucky Harbor, she finds herself distracted by her best friend, Jack Harper. In an effort to cheer up Jack’s ailing mother, Dee, Leah tells a little fib – that she and Jack are more than just friends. Soon pretending to be hot-and-heavy with this hunky firefighter feels too real to handle . . .

No-strings attachments suit Jack just fine – perfect for keeping the risk of heartbreak away. But as Jack and Leah break every one of their “just friends” rules, he longs to turn their pretend relationship into something permanent. Do best friends know too much about each other to risk falling in love? Or will Jack and Leah discover something new about each other in a little town called Lucky Harbor?

HOLY SMOKES!!! Can I burn down my house so I can get Jack Harper come to my rescue?! Jill Shalvis is back again with another Lucky Harbor novel that will make you laugh out loud and swoon like a school girl for the irresistible Jack Harper.

If you’re familiar with Jill Shalvis’ Lucky Harbor novels, then you might want to SKIP this part. Lucky Harbor is situated in a little coastal town of Washington state. The main drag of Lucky Harbor was lined with Victorian buildings painted in bright colors, housing everything from the post office to an art gallery. A long pier jutted out into the water with its cafe, arcade, ice cream shop, and Ferris wheel*. A place where you can only see in postcards. I fell in love with the town ever since I’ve read the first book, ‘Simply Irresistible‘. Too bad that Lucky Harbor is fictional, if not, I might have moved there a long time ago.

In ‘Always On My Mind‘, Jack Harper and Leah Sullivan are childhood friends. Its a known fact that every character in a book has issues, Leah and Jack is no different. She strikes me as a perfectionist but walks away when the going gets tough, afraid to screw things up. While Jack, on the other hand, tries so hard to live up to everyone’s expectations, protecting the people he loves and the citizens of Lucky Harbor. To Jack, Leah is always a friend, nothing more. They look out for each other cause that’s what best friends do, right? But everything goes downhill from there when Leah made a ‘fib’ about being intimate with Jack to make his mom happy. This puts him in a very awkward predicament, AND sees Leah in a different light. Oh, boy. He’s in BIG trouble.

The sex is absolutely fantastic! Its more REAL than FAKE. Different from what the main characters trying to show people. You can feel Leah’s uncertainty in seducing Jack. Afraid that she won’t turn him on.

I don’t think ‘Friends With Benefits’ or F-buddies was really mentioned. It just happened naturally, and I love that their story is focused more on their conflicting emotions than their physical attraction.

One of the best part about the book is the beginning of CHAPTER 10! I mean, LOL funny!!

It still makes me laugh just thinking about that part. HA!

MY RATING? 5-smoking stars of course. I think this has been one of the most hilarious books of Lucky Harbor ever since ‘Simply Irresistible’ came out. I know cause I’ve read books 1-7. So, trust me on this.

And I leave you with Chris Evans as my vision for Lieutenant Jack Harper. You’re welcome.